The Starlight After Midnight
by dayofwriting
Summary: Jaime isn't dealing well with all the changes in his life, so he goes to think, and someone unexpected helps him out. Fluff! Spoilers for "Before the Dawn"
1. Chapter 1

**A/N** Hey guys! First bluepulse/speedbuggy/whateveryouwanttocallit! I tried my darnedest, and constructive criticism is always appreciated! Also the title is sort of lame so if you have a better suggestion I will definitely take it into consideration. Reviews are always lovely!

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The moon was barely visible, clouds obscuring its pale, battered surface and leaving the dim streetlamps to illuminate the streets of El Paso. The flickering light of one old bulb flashed in through a window and across the face of an increasingly annoyed Jaime Reyes. He kicked the thin sheets off his sweaty legs and sat on the edge of his bed, elbows on his knees and palms on his eyes. Sleeping off his stress was clearly not working out, especially when every time he fell asleep he saw the future that Bart had warned him about. Even in his dreams - or rather, nightmares - he had a hard time imagining Bart as anything but cheery and bright-eyed. But when the speedster was hauling Jaime's weak, worn body out of that horrible pod, his friend had never looked more serious. It was hard to even look him in the face when the meaning of the words hit him through the fog of his disoriented state.

_Blue Beetle becomes the biggest, baddest big bad in history._ It was too much to process. First his friend Tye goes missing, then he gets kidnapped by a former leader of the team, and when he comes to after some weird alien testing (or possibly just torture, they didn't seem too concerned about the difference), Impulse tells him about an apocalyptic future in which Blue Beetle is an oppressive villain and tyrant and-

_Breathe._

Jaime stood up and tugged on his sneakers as he walked through the room, grabbing a shirt that had been carelessly slung over the end of his bed on his way. He dressed as he went and hopped up and out his window into the cool night air. _Just keep moving,_ he thought.

It was hard not to get overwhelmed, but his thoughts kept coming up with contradictions. Jaime understood that Bart would feel the need to keep an eye on him, to save the future and all that. But what puzzled him most was Bart's geniality toward him. Why was he bothering to be nice? He could have easily just asked the League to keep an eye on Jaime, especially with his connections to Barry and Jay. But it was no different than how he was around everyone else. In fact, he seemed the one who the anachronistic boy chose to spend the most time with, save for probably his family. Even when he awoke again in the Bioship, it was Bart who was standing by his side, dismissing him when Jaime spluttered out that it was him, he was still Jaime, not some monster; it was still him. "Course it is," Bart had said, smile never faltering.

Thinking back, it was odd how Bart never seemed phased about the appearance of Jaime's armor, despite the obvious sameness of the evil future Blue Beetle. _How can he stand to look at me? How can he look into my eyes and not remember a lifetime of agony?_ Jaime couldn't come up with a good reason.

Despite how far he had walked to get there, Jaime only vaguely registered the change in his surroundings when he got to his destination. He had been to the Point so frequently that finding it was second nature to him, even in the cool, shadowy darkness. The Point was an overlook that had a view of El Paso, and Jaime liked it best at night when it wasn't swimming with hikers and tourists and sightseers. Something moved out of the corner of his eye and he whipped around to see what it was, while simultaneously suppressing Khaji Da's attempts at a preliminary strike. A twig snapped somewhere to his left and he turned again, and shouted for whoever was out there to show themselves. The figure that approached him was shorter than he thought it would be, and his surprise only grew when a few moments later when the recognition hit.

"Bart? Hermano, what are you doing here? It's like one in the morning!" Jaime exclaimed, bewildered, though relief was clear on his face.

"I come here all the time?" Bart tried. He knew Jaime wasn't stupid, but it was the first thing to come to his mind, which was not as fast as his mouth. He looked into the unimpressed teen's eyes and sighed. "Okay, fine, you got me. I came to see if you were okay. I asked D- er, Nightwing where to find you and he said you came here a lot. I know what I told you is a lot of weight to carry around, but don't worry! We're gonna fix it, all of it. That's what I'm here for, right, amigo?"

"How can you be so nice to me all the time? I mean, not that I'm complaining, ese. In your past- my future- Blue Beetle made your life hell! How do you still see my face and not want to punch it?" Jaime blurted out. He didn't really mean to ask Bart that, but it was on his mind and after midnight each tick of the clock blurred the lines and words in his head.

"Fair question. First, you're not the same now as you, or someone else, will be in the future. You, sixteen year old Jaime Reyes, are a super nice, cool, hot, funny, _heroic_ guy." Wait, did he just say _hot_? Jaime thought he must be hearing things. "Dos, you're fun to hang out with! Have you ever hung out with you before? Also, you can keep up with me better than anyone else on the team. And fly! Flying is cool."

"So you want to be my friend and simultaneously save the future? I still don't get why you choose to do both."

"Are you implying that you don't want me around? Because _that_ is just _hurtful_, bro." Bart said, theatrically stabbing himself in the chest with his fist clenched around an invisible dagger. Jaime started to protest, but he was cut off. "I'm just kidding! Don't be so humble, you'll bum yourself out."

"Yeah, I guess it's just late and I've had a lot on my mind and… Hey, let's just sit and watch the sky for a little bit, sí? The clouds are clearing up." Bart nodded sympathetically and they walked over to a large smooth rock, and they both lay down, looking up at the stars.

"You can't see the stars where I come from." Bart said absentmindedly.

"No?"

Bart was silent for a while longer, and Jaime didn't push the conversation further. Bart turned his head to look at Jaime, who stared at the thinning clouds shifting and swirling above them. He studied the way that Jaime's brown eyes shone faintly in the growing moonlight, the soft color of his skin, the way he seemed at ease as his chest rose and fell slowly with the breeze. Jaime turned to look at Bart, and saw the younger boy's eyes up close- they were old beyond his years. In a moment of calm Bart dropped his guard, his peppy charade, and Jaime saw the history in his face, and the lines that had gone unnoticed before. Green eyes were peering through untamed strands of hair that looked a dull chestnut in the night.

Suddenly Bart sat up, and Jaime slowly did the same.

"Something wrong?" Jaime asked carefully.

"I thought I heard something." They both looked around, and then saw a flashlight bobbing by the road near the overlook.

"Mierda," Jaime swore under his breath. Bart shot him a questioning look. "Rangers. We have to go." His explanation was brief, but Bart understood immediately and scooped up his friend without thinking and raced in the opposite direction, and the shouts of "Hey! You kids get out of here!" were lost as rushing air filled Jaime's ears.

It took him a few moments to catch up. After a couple of seconds he realized his eyes were shut and his face was buried in Bart's chest. Which was mildly embarrassing, but there really was no other way for him to be, as Bart had picked him up bridal style, leaving very little wiggle room. He looked up at Bart's face, and when Bart looked back he was grinning. He winked playfully, which Jaime's brain decided to describe as cute, and he looked away as he felt his cheeks begin to warm. When they were only a few blocks away from Jaime's house, the speedster put him down and they began to walk at a normal, human pace.

"Your cheeks are a little pink there, _hombre_." Bart was smiling, cleary amused.

"Uh, it was, the wind is really fast." _Lame,_ thought Jaime. Bart stifled a laugh.

"Really? For a minute I thought you were blushing, but the wind is a good excuse, too." Seeing Jaime's mortified expression, he continued. "I can hardly blame you, I _am_ pretty irresistible. I mean, look at this gorgeous hair! And I'm from the future. It doesn't get any more crash than that!" Jaime was suddenly very interested in the lawns of the passing houses, realizing that they had quickly reached his own.

"Well, uh, g'night, Bart. See you later, I guess." Jaime mumbled. He was still thoroughly flustered. He turned to the side of the house his bedroom window was on, but felt a hand grab his wrist. He twisted around to face Bart, who promptly pulled him in and pressed their lips together, standing on his toes in order to do so.

The contact was short, but sweetly exhilarating all the same. Bart stepped back and let go of Jaime. "Night, Jaime," he said simply. Jaime stood still, dumbfounded and unable to find his voice. Eventually he got to realizing that Bart was waiting for him to 'get home safely' so he retreated to his open window, trying to be as casual as possible about it, but failing miserably. He kept looking at Bart, trying to figure out what had just happened, and Bart was standing on sidewalk, still smiling every time Jaime turned his head. When he climbed in through his window, he poked his head out one last time to see Bart wink and give a two-fingered salute before dashing off down the street.

As Jaime peeled off his clothes and stumbled back into bed, he realized he was smiling. Bart had kissed him, straight on the mouth. He wasn't sure, but he thought he felt…good. All of a sudden he was awake, filled with the thrill that one gets from having a crush. There was no way he could fall asleep now, with the image of Bart being so close to him still fresh in his mind. Eventually a breeze flew through his open window and carried Jaime off to sleep, a smile and the memory of a boy from the future still on his lips.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** I'm so sorry that this took me forever to write this and it's only sort of edited? Please if you see any dumb mistakes just PM me and I'll fix it because there's always something dumb that I skim over. Anywhats, enjoy!

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Jaime stared at the phone that lay on his hastily made bed. The phone didn't move. Jaime didn't move. He blinked and started pacing again. He looked over his shoulder at the alarm clock on his nightstand. _12:43 PM_ it informed him, bright green letters glaring.

Learning to be a superhero had not been this hard. Being in the same room as Batman, for any amount of time had not been this nerve-wracking. He decided he'd rather go one on one with Superman. But that wasn't an option.

Next to his bed again, he stopped pacing. He looked at his phone. He looked at his clock.

After taking several deep breaths, clearing his throat multiple times, and wiping his sweaty palms on his jeans, he picked up his phone.

And then he put it back down again.

This cycle repeated for a solid half hour before the phone stayed in his hand. The number was punched in weakly, and then cancelled, and then furtively replaced. By one-thirty he was finally able to hit _send_. Luckily, the connection was made and the rings started up before Jaime had the chance to throw the device out his window. On the second ring (but what felt like to Jaime the second _hour_), a voice came through from the other end.

"Heelloo, Garrick's residence!"

"Hey, Bart," Jaime started out feebly, mentally kicking himself. He cleared his throat again.

"Jaime! What's new, Blue? Woah, that rhymed, I gotta remember to use that more often."

"Yeah, right," Jaime said not really hearing Bart over the ringing in his own ears. "Listen, I… are you doing anything later? Tonight, I mean." His face scrunched at how un-suave he was being. He had considered asking Tye for advice, but he thought that would lead to questions and he was definitely not ready for that conversation. So he'd had to figure it out on his own.

"Nope, nothing going on here, but the Garricks are pretty old, they don't do much." Jaime heard a faint _whap!_ from the other end where he assumed Joan was smacking him over the head with a newspaper. At that image, he couldn't help but grin and shake his head softly.

"So then…" Jaime sucked in a breath. "Do you want to go on a date with me?"

"Yes! Uh, what constitutes a 'date'? Is this a black tie affair or a more 'au natural' type event?" Jaime nearly choked.

"Okay, first: I don't think that means what you think it means." Jaime paused a second to let that sink in. One the other end Bart frowned, considering that. "Second, just come in whatever you want to wear."

The rest of the conversation went smoothly, with Jaime growing more relaxed by the minute. At a quarter to three, Milagro burst into his room, spouting something about mom saying he was supposed to take her to her friend's house, and who was he talking to in there for so long?

"What have I told you about _knocking_, Milagro? I'll be out in a minute!" Jaime exclaimed, exasperatedly pushing his sister through the doorway. He closed the door firmly behind her and grabbed his phone again, nearly hitting himself in the face in his rush to get back to Bart. He laughed sheepishly, and apologized, and quickly told him where they would meet and what time. Bart agreed, and said a goodbye before they hung up.

"Who was that?" Milagro asked in a singsong voice through a mischievous grin. She leaned in through the doorway, her legs still planted in the hall. How long had she been there? What had she heard?

"No one," Jaime replied firmly. "Let's go." He slipped his phone into his pocket and pushed past his sister on the way out the door. She twirled around on her foot and ran a few steps to catch up with his swift pace. Jaime grabbed the keys from the bowl by the front door, and started outside, only waiting for Milagro to pass through so he could pull the door shut behind them.

Just after Jaime turned the key in the ignition and began backing the car out of the driveway, Milagro opened her mouth again.

"Was that your girlfriend?" She drew out the word "girlfriend", as children tend to do. Jaime slammed on the brake.

"No?" he spluttered. "No! No, that was most _definitely_ not my girlfriend." The little girl peered closely at his face.

"I think you're lying," she accused.

"Sit down," Jaime said, continuing to back up the car. "Do you _want_ me to get a ticket?" Milagro huffed and plopped back into her seat. Jaime was determined to stay silent the rest of the ride.

Jaime stepped out of the shower at four. He dried off and stood next to his closet, debating what to wear. He went to his parents' room and opened his dad's closet, wondering if he would look more sophisticated in one of his shirts. Jaime thought this over, and then went back to his own closet and pulled out a neat button down shirt with blue and white vertical stripes. Setting the shirt aside to iron later, he pulled out a pair of dark jeans that he thought would flatter him.

Jaime slipped into the bathroom and searched the medicine cabinet for some of his dad's cologne. He sniffed at two different bottles and wrinkled his nose, refusing to use either one and hoping that the scent from his shampoo and deodorant would be enough to keep him presentable.

At eight o'clock he couldn't have been more ready to get out of the house. He closed the door to his room, opened the window, and launched himself through the air once he was armored up. He flew to the spot where he and Bart were going to meet and wordlessly prayed that his directions had been clear. Not that the speedster wouldn't be able to find him after running around El Paso a few times anyway.

The world was moving too slowly, the hours stretching into years. It struck Jaime that he really, _really_ cared about Bart. He tried to remember when that feeling had started, but he couldn't think of a specific moment. Bart was always there when he needed him most, and with all the secrets he had to keep from his family and his friends, that was the most valuable thing Jaime could ask for. This date was a big deal for him. At least, it was going to be whenever Bart showed up.

"What time is it?"

_One minute and seventeen seconds since you asked previously_, Khaji Da informed his host._ Your heart rate is considerably above average. You would do well to relax, Jaime Reyes._

Jaime let out a sigh. This time, his annoying personal demon was probably right. He inhaled and held his breath, then exhaled slowly. He opened his eyes just in time to catch a blur of color pass by him, and then come back, stopping beside where he stood.

"Heya, Blue!" Bart said excitedly. "I mean, _Jaime_," he amended, slyly elbowing his date. Jaime was relieved that at least one of them wasn't nervous. He noticed that Bart held one hand suspiciously behind his back, and before he could ask about it, he got an answer.

"Oh, um, I brought you some flowers, but it turns out that they don't really travel so well, sorry about that," he said, thrusting out a fist full of wilted crocus and chrysanthemum. "Is it too girly? Joan said that everyone loves flowers, and they're really romantic. Well, not these ones I guess since they're all beat up-" Bart abruptly cut himself off with a confused and slightly hurt expression when he saw that Jaime was laughing softly.

"No, no, Bart, I'm not laughing at you! I think it's really sweet that you even tried to bring me flowers. I love them, cariño," Jaime assured him quickly, and gently took the flowers into one hand. With his other hand, his fingers found Bart's and squeezed. "Are you ready to go? I don't want to get there too late."

"I was born ready! Wait, where did you say we were going?"

"I didn't. It's sort of a surprise. I'll tell you when we get there," Jaime said, tugging Bart alongside him on the sidewalk. Bart huffed, but couldn't help but smile. He decided right then that he didn't mind this era so much. Especially this holding hands stuff. And maybe later he could kiss Jaime again. He smiled extra hard at that thought.

The walk wasn't very far and in twenty minutes, when the last rays of the sun had faded from the sky, their destination came into view. There hadn't been a sidewalk for some time, and Jaime pulled Bart off the side of the road and in through some trees, before darting across the empty street and slipping into the bushes. He put a finger to his lips to signify that Bart should be quiet and follow his lead. Not fifteen feet to their left was a dirt driveway with a ticket window on the side. A bored looking teenager sat inside reading a magazine with her feet on the counter.

They moved to their right, running once they were out from the cover of the plants, they ran up to the back of a concrete building. Jaime silently suited up and lifted Bart into his arms and flew up until they were both standing atop the roof of the projection building, and Bart was looking around.

Behind them lay the road and the way they had come, but in front of them lay a plot of land with a huge white screen at the other end of it, and several parked cars in the stretch in between. Then over his shoulder he saw the bright yellow and pink sign by the road light up, proclaiming, _Drive-In Theater! _with lots of little light bulbs around the edges lighting up in a trail one after the other.

"I guess they probably don't have these in the future, there are barely any left today," Jaime said as he moved to grab a dark green duffle bag that he had stashed on the roof earlier. He pulled out a thin sheet and a thick blanket before he continued. "And tonight they're playing _Back to the Future_, a movie involving time travel that I personally can't believe no one has made you watch yet." He spread the sheet out on the ground, and gestured for Bart to sit beside him.

Bart sat close next to Jaime, and nestled his head on Jaime's shoulder for a moment. Jaime pulled the blanket over them, since the sun had gone down and it wasn't quite summer yet. They chatted quietly until the movie started, and Bart laughed in all the right places, and Jaime explained things were he needed to. By the ending credits, Bart's head was resting gently in Jaime's lap while Jaime traced lazy circles into his back.

"So what do you think, as a former time-traveler?" Jaime asked.

"Well, you can tell it was made way before actual time travel was even conceived, but other than that, I'd say it was pretty crash!" Bart tried not to yawn, but it happened anyway. "So, does this make us boyfriends?" Bart asked suddenly. Jaime froze, but only for a second before he recomposed himself. Though he knew it was a date, and obviously romantic, he hadn't really thought about labeling it before. He supposed that this was what living in the moment was like.

"Yeah," he said thoughtfully. "I think it does." Bart tilted his head to look up at Jaime with a smile on his face and sleep in his eyes, and Jaime couldn't resist leaning down to press his lips against Bart's.

They lay on the roof for a little while, even after the last car pulled out of the lot and all the neon lights were turned off. Just the two of them and the open Texas sky, the night around them softly coming to life with the songs of crickets and grasshoppers and cicadas, and the stars dancing overhead. Jaime looked at the speedster curled in his lap (who was currently fighting off sleep and losing) and rested his mouth on his crazy reddish hair. _Boyfriends_, he thought. He smiled to himself and leaned back with his head to the heavens and thanked God for sending this beautiful little light into his crazy little life.


End file.
